SPECapc for SolidWorks 2015 is performance evaluation software for vendors and users of computing systems running SolidWorks 2015 CAD/CAM software. It is designed to run on Microsoft Windows 7 64-bit platforms.

The benchmark consists of nine graphics tests and two CPU tests. The graphics-oriented tests use three SolidWorks view settings -- RealView, Ambient Occlusion and shadows -- in combination with shaded and shaded-with-edges display styles. Two CPU tests within the benchmark perform tessellation and PhotoView360 rendering. The benchmark features 12 models, three of which are new in this version of the benchmark, with the largest containing 4.75 million triangles.

New features exercised in the SPECapc for SolidWorks 2015 benchmark are Order Independent Transparency (OIT), a modern methodology for quickly displaying transparency, and Full-Scene Anti-Aliasing (FSAA) for higher-quality visuals. The benchmark can be run with either the default anti-aliasing method (edges/sketches only) or with FSAA.

A fully licensed or trial version of SolidWorks 2015 Service Pack 2 or greater is required to run the benchmark. SolidWorks feature enhancements such as RealView and OIT are baked into the application and support for new graphics hardware is added via service packs. This is the reason that SPECapc has deviated from its norm of requiring just one specific service pack when running the benchmark. Please be aware that performance might differ between service packs.

SolidWorks 2015 does not support the use of OIT transparency for all graphics hardware, and will instead use an older style transparency for these cases, so all results might not be directly comparable.

SPECapc requests that users review the setup instructions before running this benchmark. The group recommends resetting application settings back to default and then following the setup instructions to ensure users have the proper settings before running the benchmark. The default application settings need to be altered for PhotoView360 for the CPU tests to run and display properly. The run rules are included in the benchmark package, and have details about the requirements for running the benchmark.